


five things i love about you

by alexandradanvers



Category: Aquaman (2018), DCEU, DCU
Genre: 5+1 Things, F/M, I love them oof, aquamera, he's such a cinnamon roll and such a bean, hopefully, spoilers for the movie, they're both lucky to have each other
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-12-31
Updated: 2019-01-13
Packaged: 2019-10-01 08:58:02
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,261
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17241323
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/alexandradanvers/pseuds/alexandradanvers
Summary: Arthur surprises Mera on her birthday, leading her around the castle with the sweetest notes. Or: Five times Arthur professes his love for Mera in the form of letters and one time when she says it back.Happy birthday, my love. I love the way you’re adventurous. I love the way you like the taste of roses. Remember that day in Sicily? When you got that bouquet from the man and you took a bite when you thought no one was looking? Of course you do. And I turned around and I saw you there, half the petals stuffed in your mouth. You were amazed by the city of Sicily, fascinated by the lifestyle of surface-dwellers. You were open and accepting to whatever culture you found up there, and you embraced it with the adventurous soul in you. Thank you for being there for me. I love you for that.Love, Arthur.





	1. Roses

**Author's Note:**

> My second fic for AquaMera because I couldn't resist how cute they were! Hope you enjoy it and happy reading! I don't own any DC characters and anything related and all mistakes are mine.

Mera woke up to the gentle lapping of the ocean. She was facing away from the inner part of the bed, but as she reached over to wake Arthur up she found that the spot next to her was still warm, Arthur nowhere to be found. It was a particularly good day today, the sun lit up the interiors of her chamber and reflected on the marble arches that held up the doorway. It was her birthday today, she remembered. It was never a big deal, but since it was her first ever birthday with Arthur, she hoped he would surprise her.  
  
“Arthur?” Rubbing her eyes to get used to the light, she called into the direction of the bathroom. No one replied, which was abnormal for Arthur. He usually would be still in bed until the late morning.

 

She ran a few fingers through her hair, tackling the knots and smoothing them out. She adjusted her clothes, feeling the cold morning temperature pervade the air around her. The door was left a crack open, enough to invite her to get out of her warm bed. She slipped on her laurel green robe which hung from her chair next to her study desk, which had all her scrolls and maps that she studied last night. Her fiery hair floated behind her in waves as she made her way to the doorway. She climbed up the few steps, wiggling her toes as she got used to the colder temperature of the water.

 

“Arthur?” She called again as she pushed the door open a bit more, only to find nothing but a small rose tied to the door handle with the smallest bit of kelp. She laughed at his antics, smiling as she unwrapped the pile of kelp. She held it in her hands, finding that the thorns had been taken off. She watched the little bubbles float from the middle to the edge of the petal, before floating up towards the surface.

 

Not far from where she stood, another flash of scarlet red caught her eyes. She swam over to the end of the hallway, looking both ways to see if Arthur was anywhere to be seen. She unwrapped the other piece of kelp, tied identical to the rose before, except there was a little note that lay in the folds of the rose petals.

 

On a small square piece of coloured kelp, in Arthur’s messy handwriting, had the words: “Happy Birthday Princess. P.S, follow the roses, don’t eat them.” There was an arrow on the bottom, pointing down to the right hallway. She smiled to herself, placing it in one of the pockets of her robe. She took a little bite from the rose, happily munching on a snack as she went to find more roses.

 

The Atlantean palace seemed emptier than usual, less buzzing with noise and life, and fewer guards on their rounds as well. As she passed the dining hall she couldn’t help but notice that Atlanna (she had told Mera to not bother with the titles that much, though Mera still addressed her as Queen outside the palace walls) and Vulko were nowhere to be found. When she asked the guards who were making their rounds, she got a half-hearted response as they all muttered something about having places to be.

 

She went on with her search, following the direction that Arthur had put in the note. Once she found the next rose (which wasn’t terribly hard since Arthur didn’t bother with hiding them too well.), which was wrapped on a marble column, she opened the folded note, which said: “Thank you for all our adventures. On land and under sea.” She’d never been happier than she was with him. And she was thankful for all the adventures they’d had, whether it was exploring Atlantean ruins or a simple day in a local museum.

 

Not far from the column, was yet another rose, wrapped to the handle of a door which led to the observatory, where they would spend nights sitting in a comfortable silence, looking up at the starry night sky. Initially, he’d come here when he was homesick, not that he didn’t feel at home here, but he missed his father and the simplicities of surface life. She’d been there for him during that time. But the more time that passed, he wasn’t as homesick anymore, feeling a stronger sense of belonging in Atlantis. This had soon become a regular spot for them. On the note it said: “I’m thankful and grateful for you, princess.” There was a smily face drawn on it too, and Mera smiled as she added it to her collection.

 

She gently opened the door to the observatory, calling out his name again. She swam into the bubble, gently landing on her feet, using her hydrokinesis to remove the water from her. Right in front of her, two roses hung from the telescope. She picked them both up, finding two notes hanging from it.

 

“Thanks for putting up with my annoying ass,” One wrote. She rolled her eyes playfully, knowing that Arthur would put something like that in his notes.

 

“Have the best birthday ever,” She found that he was really a sweetheart, something that she hadn’t known but found out through their short expedition to find the trident.

 

With six roses in one hand, and the notes in her pocket, she walked further into the observatory, to the innermost room. She noticed two bouquets of roses were placed on the bench that stood in the middle of the whole observatory. There was a card in the middle, with two photo strips on the sides of the cards.

 

Both of the photo strips were from the first time they went to Arthur’s favourite diner, where they used the classic photo booth and had taken silly photos all the way through. They were in sets of four, and the last one of both were Arthur kissing her forehead and she was smiling so happily she almost couldn’t believe it was her. She flipped open the card and realised that Arthur had wrote a message to her.

 

_Happy birthday, my love. I love the way you’re adventurous. I love the way you like the taste of roses. Remember that day in Sicily? When you got that bouquet from the man and you took a bite when you thought no one was looking? Of course you do. And I turned around and I saw you there, half the petals stuffed in your mouth. You were amazed by the city of Sicily, fascinated by the lifestyle of surface-dwellers. You were open and accepting to whatever culture you found up there, and you embraced it with the adventurous soul in you. Thank you for being there for me. I love you for that._

 

_Love, Arthur._


	2. Shells

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I wrote this out all in one session so I'm sorry if there are mistakes, I'll edit it soon and all the errors are mine.

 

She smiled at his letter to her. She clutched it to her chest, thinking about how happy she was with him. She flipped the card, scanning it for anything she missed. On the back, in Arthur’s messy scrawl, were more instructions.

 

_Find the shells. Happy birthday._

 

As if by magic, suddenly a haze was lifted and with clarity, she spotted a dark blue and purple shell sitting by itself on a bench by the glass lookout. She bounded over, quick on her feet, excited for her next present.

 

Inside the lip of the clam was a message written from Arthur again. She ran two fingers over the words as it echoed in her mind.

 

_Thank you for sticking by my side, even when no one believed me._

 

Inside was a medium sized pearl that she could hold between her fingertips, but it wasn’t the usual white sheen that caught her attention. It was more like a snow globe really, though it didn’t have the bottom part stand.

 

Inside was a picture of them both that Tom had probably taken, hands intertwined as they walked along the beach. It was a cool autumn evening, and the wind was gently caressing her hair behind her. The lighthouse stood on the left of them, the natural pinkish gradient of the sunset casting a soft glow on them. She remembered that day when he had first taken her to the surface for an actual relaxing rest day.

 

The lip of the shell was pointing out the way she came in, so she took it as a sign that there were no more shells in here. She looked around the room again, eyes scanning to identify the same shade of colour. There wasn’t any left, so she decided to leave.

 

She swam out into the hallway, and the almost holographic like sheen of the clamshell caught her eyes as she passed the entrance of the royal heritage room. Inside was a large collection of Atlantean artefacts that had been passed down generation after generation.

 

Tridents, crowns and weapons, anything really was in here. Two guards stood at the door, and as Mera drifted in they nodded in respect.

 

She swam forward quickly, and the shell lay onto one of the prototype versions of the KingFisher. Encased inside was a similar pearl, though the image was different. It was one of them in Mera’s now destroyed KingFisher, dodging border patrol and running away from Atlantis. It was when they had first met, and she thought of Arthur nothing short of an arrogant asshole. The city of Atlantis stood behind them, a dazzling display of futuristic tech. It was one probably snapped by the border guards, and she was grateful for the picture.

 

On the lip again, it said: _Thank you for saving my ass countless times._

 

She smiled at all the memories. She dropped it into her pocket, alongside the previous gifts, the card and the notes and the first shell with the pearl inside.

 

On her way out she thanked the guards, and she continued on her adventure to find all the pearls.

 

She drifted down the stairs and into the kitchen, as she had a gut feeling that Arthur would go there for a small detour and put something there. She stepped down the turquoise steps and it echoed around the unusually empty palace.

 

Down in the kitchen, there were people rushing in and about, cooking up the meals for today. When they saw the Princess of Xebel (who they all guessed would soon be the Queen of Atlantis), they all took a bow.

 

She nodded back at them, scanning the room for a shell. Atop of a barrel that stored fresh foods, there lay the familiar shininess of the shell.

 

She opened it, and inscribed inside was a shorter sentence: _Thank you for all your love._

 

The picture in the pearl was one of them smiling, facing the camera. They had gone to a carnival for a day and when they took that picture they were stuffed full with sweets and a whole bunch of foods the Arthur made Mera try. In the picture, she was holding a blue raspberry cotton candy, which had quickly become a favourite.

 

It was one of her favourite memories, as it was her first time to a carnival and she couldn’t be happier to spend it with Arthur. He took her on rides, both mundane and insane, and she almost threw up while on the ferris wheel because of her fear of heights, though she’d admit that it was worth the trip after. He helped her when she had puked into a nearby toilet, holding her long locks of hair as she threw up the contents of her stomach: the sugary treats did not help at all.

 

She placed it in her pocket, and the following the lip of the clam, which pointed towards the direction of another set of stairs which led up to the banquet hall, she bolted up the stairs in search of the next one.

 

She arrived at the banquet hall, and she was immediately hit with memories of the first ever coronation party for Arthur after they had stopped Orm. She remembered dancing with him, in a beautiful custom made emerald dress that was strapless and had long sleeves. Her hair was half up and half down, with braids that flowed down from the bun atop her head. He was looking rather dashing himself, in his coronation outfit and a crown atop his head.

 

Under one of the marble arches, she saw a shell and another card. The pearl had a photo of them, smiles on both of their faces and they danced together. He had one arm around her waist, and other hand clasping hers.

 

She opened the card, and in it was a similar photo to the one in the last pearl, but it was a candid shot of just them, looking serious and deeply in love with each other. The rest of the background was faded out, a beam of light just shining on them both. 

Below that, in Arthur’s writing, he had written:

 

_Happy birthday, my queen. I love you for your badassery, your elegance, your intelligence. I love the way that you are so much more capable than I am, yet you never doubt me and give me your full trust in whatever crazy shit I’m doing. I love the way that you never back down from any challenge, that you fight for yourself and your kingdom._

 

_Believe me when I say you are the strongest woman I’ve ever met. I’m so grateful for you, and I’m lucky to have someone like you._

 

_All my love,_

_Arthur._

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading and I hope you enjoyed it as much as I loved writing them :) Hopefully, I'll get around to writing all five parts of this. Stay tuned!
> 
>  
> 
> Find me on my [Tumblr?](https://agent-alexandradanvers.tumblr.com/) See you there!


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